


Little Boy Lost

by Merfilly



Category: DCU (Comics)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Drug Use, Multi, Underage Prostitution
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-14
Updated: 2014-03-14
Packaged: 2018-01-15 16:43:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,733
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1311877
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Merfilly/pseuds/Merfilly
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's like the Judas Contract, just earlier... and with a true Titan.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Little Boy Lost

**Author's Note:**

> Set between the original Titans breaking up, with Roy's fall to drugs, and the founding of the New Teen Titans. 
> 
> Posted in serial format at my Livejournal originally.

The boy was cold and shaking, close to the snapping point with the fire that burned in his veins, begging him to do anything to get what he needed. He pressed himself up to his feet by force of will alone, and stumbled through the alley where kids of both sexes plied their bodies for smack. He was pretty enough, even with the traces of his using, he was sure of it. All it took was not thinking about the person, to take himself someplace else in his mind. If he envisioned red and green and black…. the john never had to know.

He copied the others boys, untucking his shirt in that specific manner that seemed to imply available, then ran his fingers through his hair to pull it around his eyes more. The johns preferred the kids to at least pretend not to see them. All they wanted was to shoot off, press the money in a hand, and then run off.

He walked the line, keeping an eye half out for both cops and johns, hoping he scored before he collapsed again. He was close to hopeless as the night drug on without a single look his way from the men passing through. He felt his knees begin to give way, as he just wanted to curl up on himself with the shakes that were hitting him. With a piteous cry, the red headed urchin fell beside the building, putting his back to the wall as he did curl up on himself.

Footsteps about five minutes later did little to draw him out of the increasing catatonia. It was not until two very large hands closed on his shoulders that he found the reserves to try and straighten himself out.

"Ten bucks," he said automatically, before peaking up through red bangs to see who had accosted him. 

He knew he had never seen the man before, but even in his drug dulled mind, he knew without a doubt that this was a man tied to big events. From the shock of white hair to the black eye patch, from the taut muscles in the bare forearms to the broad chest barely contained by the shirt the man wore, this man radiated danger.

"When I'm done, you'd pay me for what I'm about to give you, Harper." He brought the boy to his chest, ignoring the tightly coiled fear. "Hush, boy; I promise you'll be fine, and well cared for. What I want and what you need happen to run side by side," he added. 

"Who are you?" Roy asked harshly.

"Your salvation, if you just let me care for you," the man answered in a gruff but paternal way. Something about the man, a deep charisma, or maybe just the gentle way Slade held him, made Roy hope this was the truth, giving into his fate.

* * *

An angry Dinah Lance was not something anyone enjoyed seeing. Hal Jordan, however, was of a mind that this once, he wished she would lose control of her gift and blast Oliver Queen through the wall of his home. Hal kept his mouth shut as Dinah tore into Ollie for turning the boy loose. He felt they should get going, go find Roy as fast as possible, but he also knew Dinah needed to get this out of her system, Ollie needed to hear it, and he trusted the ring to help him find the boy in next to no time. He just supposed he should have been paying a bit more attention to what Dinah was actually saying, because he had to hurry to keep up with her as she suddenly whirled and headed for the door.

"Don't you dare call me, Oliver Queen, or come by my place! I will kick you hard enough to make you sing soprano if I see you!" Dinah ended her tirade with. "Hal!"

"Coming," he said, for once intimidated instead of intimidating. 

He wished again that he had stopped Dinah earlier in her tirade, when the ring could find no trace whatsoever of the boy. She was scouring every low neighborhood while he kept asking the ring to find Roy, only to be told Roy was not findable. The frustration of it was enough that when he landed he punched the wall next to where Dinah was waiting. She had been crying, he could see, though he knew she'd deny it and get angry if he said a word. She held up a scrap of cloth; Hal readily recognized it as being a piece of one of Roy's favorite shirts.

"The…children in this alley finally told me he was here." She sounded almost broken. "A man came, carried him away."

"Did you get a description?" he asked, wondering if he should call Barry or J'onn to deal with her.

"Yeah, after I paid a few of them, they were willing to talk," Dinah told him. "I want to get Barry's help. He knows the police methods best." It did not surprise Hal in the least that was her choice. Had it not been for Iris, she was sure Barry and Dinah would have been together from almost day one of the League.

"I think we'd be safe in calling all the old gang up, Dinah, honey." He drew her up close so he could take off for Barry's home. "If my ring can't find him at all, he's being shielded from us. So let's get to Barry and get started with the description you go on the man, and go from there while I get in touch with Arthur and J'onn."

* * *

Roy shivered violently, but it was nowhere near as bad as the last few weeks had been. Slade had chosen to wean him off the drugs letting him have less and less each time. Roy had fought, begged, cursed, tried to bribe the man, but Slade was immovable. When the withdrawal would kick in, though, he was always there, catching Roy and holding him close, usually bundling him in a blanket to hold him safe against the seizures. 

Roy had woken in the man's arms many times, or still in the man's bed. Slade had not touched him in a sexual nature once, had not asked anything of him but to be strong and kick the habit. Roy knew there had to be a catch, but it was hard to shake the gratitude he felt every time Slade washed his face from the heaving spells, or the beginnings of love that were stirring every time Slade ruffled his hair for waiting longer to take that next hit. Roy found himself vowing to kick it, just to show the big man his faith was well placed. Then that blue eye would shine with even more pride, and Roy could begin to live up to Slade's ideals.

* * *

Oliver Queen winced away from the raw ache that was the sight of Hal holding Dinah intimately, as the League met with the intention of setting guidelines for the junior team. He had a feeling half these guidelines were his fault, for failing Roy so miserably. The boy was still missing, two months after Ollie had thrown him out so coldly. 

Dinah would not even look at him. She stayed in Hal's protective embrace, right up until Batman and the young Robin walked in. When she did take her seat, which was next to Hal's, they remained closer than absolutely necessary.

Batman elaborated on the new protocols for the Titans, stressing the need for them to remain in touch with one another, even over long breaks from actually being in the Tower. Robin showed the new roster, his eyes flickering like cutting glass over Ollie when he pointed out a place was being held for some who were unavailable at present.

In the end, Ollie vowed that if he ever got a chance to make it right, he would do so by making sure he never let Roy out of sight again.

* * *

Roy grinned at the older man as they sparred. He had been fully clean for two weeks, and had been exercising hard every day. He had even caught up on his lessons, studying hard to please the man that had given him complete dedication. Whenever the man had been absent, he had been careful to explain he had business, and he would return as soon as it was done. Nor did Roy find the time to be lonely, as the man had a companion, a British guy named Wintergreen who was constantly writing. 

"Kid, you are really shaping up into a fine young man," Slade complimented, catching one punch and throwing the boy over his hip. He followed to pin Roy on the practice mat, his one good eye showing nothing but friendly pride.

"Thanks Slade." His whole body flushed to the sound of such sincere admiration of his growing skill. Slade moved off him, reached down, and hauled him up with one hand.

"C'mon. I have something for you, Roy." He tucked the boy under a lazy arm, walking him toward the table that held the various weapons Slade used in his own practice. The big man pulled a drape off of a case, and Roy started trembling. "Easy, kid. I told you I would take care of you, didn't I? What kind of man would I be if I neglected to let you practice the skill you've made famous in the past three years?"

"I'm no bowman," Roy protested, weakly. He did not want to be reminded of the man who let him down.

"Yes, you are. A helluva bowman, but it's your choice." Slade gripped his shoulders tightly. "You're mine now, Roy. I'm never going to kick you when you're down, or let you fall like he did. But I'd hate to see you put your gift aside because some old man in a Robin Hood suit did kick you." He tipped Roy's face up to him. "When someone becomes your enemy, you don't give up what you share with them; you beat them at it."

Roy looked at the bow case, then back up at his savior. "You think I can be better than him?"

"Guaranteed. You've been doing it since you were a kid. He shows a lot of signs of having taken the sport up as an adult. Your muscles have learned the reflexes more deeply," Slade told him. "Your eye is superb. And you can fight in close, which means you don't depend on the bow."

Roy listened to the analytical words, with the sentiment of a caring man behind them, and squeezed his eyes shut against unwanted tears of gratitude. He was quickly engulfed in the big man's arms, being comforted, his hair stroked, and soft words encouraging him to let it out. Through it all, Roy never let go of the man's shirt, clinging to his new lifeline.

* * *

Roy sat with Wintergreen, playing the Chinese board game, Go, late one night while Slade was gone. It had been three months since Slade had rescued him, three weeks since he got completely clean. The last week had seen him regain his skill with the bow…and discover a love of it all over again, for the way it made Slade smile.

"Wintergreen, tell me something about Slade." Roy did this every so often, on the nights when his benefactor was gone. "I mean, the trophies tell me he hunted game once, but his trips are too short to be safari jaunts," the boy said. "And he's a master fighter, a marksman like I've never seen, and that sword work he does is just awesome."

"That's really for him to say, boy," Wintergreen harrumphed. "He's a good man, though. I can tell you that. He does his job with skill and pride, never letting emotion cloud a pure judgment." 

Roy's eyes narrowed, considering for a long moment. "Wintergreen, how do I make him happy? I mean truly happy to have me in his home, to make up for all the trouble I've been?"

"You've not been any trouble to either of us, young man, but I can hear the real question." The older man smiled at his shared charge. "Give yourself over to what he can teach, and succeed at it," he told the boy with a nod. "He sees a good bit of potential in you, and he will not steer you wrong or break that." 

"I am his." The teen's voice was fervent in his desire to make that the truth of his existence.

* * *

Hal looked on as the final work was done for the Titans' new headquarters. As some of them would be living there on a regular basis, he had chosen to stop by and be sure all was right with the project. His ring had scanned everything, and he detected no danger. He knew that a year before he would have just dismissed the team from his mind; he was pretty sure Dinah would have as well. They had not been personally bound in the path those kids had chosen, but Ollie's mistake…the loss of Roy… had made the feisty woman insist that someone at the League level always keep an eye on the kids. Those members without sidekicks had grumbled some, but not very loudly after Dinah somehow got Batman to publicly agree with her.

He saw the young leader of the team, his bright colors such a high contrast to his mentor's, and opted to land near him.

"How goes it, son?" he asked, looking on with the boy. 

"I'll be glad to get it finished. We need each other again." Robin turned to look at the ring slinger. "Anything?" It had become a refrain, every time their paths crossed. Hal slowly shook his head.

"The ring just can't seem to pick him up, and I've searched so many places. Canary has worked every street crime contact she has." Hal tried to keep his voice neutral, but they were close to giving up. It had just been too long.

"Why can't you find him? Or at least…" He could not bring himself to say 'or a body', but that was the general consensus he had heard around them.

"I did not know him as well as I should. I had never had the ring scan him specifically to know him." He took another breath. "If he's lost his sense of identity, the ring would also fail to recognize him; can you understand that?"

"Yes sir, Green Lantern. I just wish…" Robin gritted his teeth tight. He would not be so emotional; Batman would not approve.

"We all do, son." Hal clasped the teen's shoulder, showing pride in his stoic behavior. "I've got to get back to work. Just wanted to be sure it was coming along." He prepared to throw himself skyward, the energy rising around him.

"Tell Black Canary we appreciated the cookies," Robin added as an afterthought.

"I will, son."

* * *

Slade watched as Roy finished the training course nearly twenty seconds faster than his last run, despite carrying an even heavier kit bag. He had been giving the boy the best of training, since the night he came home to find Roy shadow boxing himself into exhaustion. The boy was a gifted marksman; he could handle every single projectile weapon Slade owned with a proficiency that would make a basic drill instructor die from ecstasy. 

"Better?" the boy asked, trying to even his breathing out.

"Best so far," Slade acknowledged, a smile touching his lips. "You have the makings of a fine soldier." He reached out, ruffling the kid's red hair, smiling more at how the boy pressed into the touch. 

"What if I want to be like you?" Roy asked, meeting Slade's gaze with fluttering, too-long eyelashes in a face that had traces of his trial by fire limning the innocence that should be his. Slade's smile faded, as he ran his hand along the side of Roy's face, until his hand cupped the boy by the back of the head, pulling him close to his side.

"Drop the kit bag, kid, and let's go talk over a few things," he offered in a fair, even voice. "Because you just asked a question dear to my heart."

Roy had hesitated, scared he had done something wrong, even though Slade was still touching his hair, the gentle affection so apparent to the boy in how those fingers played with the ends of his hair. Then at Slade's last remark, he grinned, thinking that maybe he would learn a tiny bit more about his protector. When the kit bag had landed on the ground, Slade looped a friendly arm over his slender shoulders, walking him over to the deck and its waiting lounge chairs. Wintergreen was sprawled in one, his pen having slipped from his fingers, the latest journal endeavor fallen against his chest. 

"What would make you want to be like me? Do you even know what I do?" Slade settled into a lounge chair with the grace of a reclining lion. Roy knelt at its side, never liking to be separated by too much distance when the man was home. That suited Slade, who started stroking the boy's hair again. His own sons…Grant was older, a man now, whereas Joey was not much younger, and as far from anything Slade had ever been as possible. In some ways, Slade saw both boys in this new ward he had taken in. Roy had Grant's fire, or else the drugs would have won the battle. The redhead, however, had an aching gentle nature below that, one that reminded the mercenary keenly of his younger son. 

"Wintergreen says people hire you to take care of problems. You kill the problems, or handle other things, like kidnappings on occasion." Roy's eyes were clear as he met the man's eyes.

"By problem, he means people." Slade read every line in the boy's face, seeing a flicker, then resolute steel. "Far cry from being on the side of the angels, kid."

"But you can make me good enough to be able to choose my contracts, like you do. And if I prefer to hunt the sleazy ones, that's my choice, ain't it?" Roy felt the man's hand tighten on the back of his head, with a kind of pride Ollie had never shown him.

"You've got a point, Roy." Slade chuckled. "Now we get to why I brought you home that day, kid, so get comfortable." Roy proceeded to sit Indian style right where he was, eyes never leaving the man's face. 

"I was asked, just before you and your friends broke up you club, to take a hit on your team." Slade watched Roy jerk slightly. "I passed. Why hunt kids?"

"But you came looking…for me?" It did not make sense, and it also worried the boy some, wrapping his head around the motives.

"I wanted to see why a contract was pulled to abduct all of you. I looked into exactly what your team was up to." He frowned now, reaching up to stroke his small beard. "And frankly, I was worried. It seemed to me you kids were taking a lot of unnecessary risks, getting hurt quite a bit, and none of you were really being watched well by your mentors."

"And?" Those words rang true to Roy. He knew they had gotten into a lot of scrapes that they really, really ought to have had someone grown with them for.

"But then you kids split up. And I had to dig a little harder." Slade ruffled that red hair, amazed that the kid let him be so open with affection, and angry that the man who had had him had come so close to ruining the perfection in Roy by making him so insecure. "I found out the others weren't so cut off from their mentors. But you…" Slade's flash of anger was genuine, and it caused Roy's heart to swell with love. "I wanted to kill that bastard for free, seeing how he kept letting a dame or the ring wielder come between him and your training, your raising."

"So you saw…saw what he…" Roy tried hard not to cry, remembering Ollie's harsh words to him.

"Kid, if I had, they'd have been reporting about a dead millionaire." He shook his head, letting his hand fall on the boy's shoulder. "No, I was out of town, on business. That's why I did not find you fast enough." The mercenary sighed softly. "Should have left Wintergreen on your tail. Had already decided I was going to get you out of there. Just had not seen the best way."

Roy flushed, realizing this man had seen him, had decided there was something in him more than worth noticing, and it made him feel especially warm. "Why?" he asked softly, needing to know exactly what it was that made this man, a man who was a living weapon take an interest in him with so much heart.

"First, it was your talent. Second, it was your complete passion for what you did," Slade said honestly. "I knew I could train you far better, make you like me, and you would be at the top of the chain." The big man's thumb and finger caught Roy's chin at his bashful look away. "Then you came in to my home, and I knew you would understand me when I say this. Your friends, those kids…they don't need to be playing this game. One of them could be the next to get hurt like you were," Slade counseled. "And if you want to be like me, you need to understand that sometimes it is best to rearrange the game board. Those kids need to be taken off the board completely, before something bad happens."

Roy considered what had been said, looking at his hands folded in his lap, then back up. "I could help you do that. Help you make them stop playing."

Slade smiled, nodding slightly. "You certainly could."

* * *

Wintergreen watched with a cautious eye as Slade and the young man sparred. In the six months since the boy had come into household, there had been a remarkable change in him…and in Slade. The mercenary assassin was very caught up in training the young man, had passed by a few smaller contracts rather than take the time from molding Roy into the best warrior he could be. And Roy had thrived, growing almost overnight into a semblance of the man he would one day be. Gone was the nearly shattered body of a boy selling his flesh for drugs. Now there was a strong young man, muscles forming and body growing lean with the intensive care Slade put to his training.

Now, however, Wintergreen had seen something lately that had him concerned. Roy, obviously caught up in a severe case of worship for Slade having rescued him, had been trying to act more grown, more like a man every time the mercenary was around him. Other signs had manifested, like Roy ducking away from affectionate hair rufflings with a sheepish grin, combined with long stares at the one eyed man when Slade was relaxing in his den at night.

And now…the faithful friend wondered just how long Slade was going to not address the lingering contacts of the boy's body when they sparred. Wintergreen could see it, so he knew damn well the assassin had already noted it. He just hoped Slade handled it delicately enough to not lose what they had already built within the boy. Roy Harper was the epitome of his generation's warriors…and he was the key to removing a growing threat to the way business worked in Deathstroke's circles.

Out in the sand pit, testing each other's balance in the shifting material, the young man was currently losing a contest of strength. His body shifted one last time in an effort to regain leverage, but Slade penetrated the move with ease, carrying Roy down onto his back and holding him down by the throat. 

"Kid, you're getting better," the ex-soldier said with pride. "Go clean up now, and I'll see you in my den...say twenty minutes," he told the boy.

"Sure thing, Slade," Roy promised, bouncing up as soon as the hand left his throat. He took off at a jog, heading inside the house while Slade walked over to his best friend and long time companion.

"Kid's got notions to go with that physique he's filling out," Slade commented casually. Wintergreen frowned in disapproval, shaking his head.

"I thought you intended to foster the father image with him," Wintergreen retorted.

"I was working on that. He seems to be rejecting it." The mercenary shrugged. "He is sixteen, and I've been trying to encourage him to make his own decisions."

"This can't end well," Wintergreen prophesied.

* * *

The boy arrived promptly twenty minutes later as Slade was looking over his ongoing chess game with Wintergreen, deciding the best move to leave for his old friend to respond to. The redhead looked vaguely damp around the edges, but was dressed in his casual dinner clothes. Wintergreen, Slade decided, had taken a firm hand in teaching the boy the proper attire for a life at their station.

"Sir?" Roy was also learning manners from the older man, a fact Slade appreciated. It would make using Roy in his line of work that much easier, if the boy could blend from low to high society.

"We need to have a talk, son." Slade was typically a direct man, and Roy was more than steady enough to handle it. "Have a seat."

The archer did with a tension Slade could not miss. The boy was growing more confident, but obviously still expected the other shoe to fall any day now. He went and perched casually on the corner of the large desk, looking at Roy once he settled.

"Tell me what you want from me, in terms of our arrangements. What do you see as my responsibilities to you?" The mercenary felt it best to grab this bull by the horns, and see where he could steer it.

"Nothing, Slade. You took me in, but you don't owe me anything," Roy began, but Slade held up a finger.

"Think. I took you in, yes. What does that mean?" Slade pinned the boy with a direct stare, as the archer tried to struggle through all the classics of philosophy that Wintergreen had been teaching him. A phrase, 'who conquered, becomes' passed through his mind, but Slade had not conquered…

"You chose to take me into your home, you have given me your training, with expectations of me following in your footsteps." Roy struggled through the concepts, seeing the strings attendant to all Slade had done for him. "But by choosing me, you bound yourself to me…responsibility for me is yours."

Slade nodded. It was close enough to the concepts of the Greek philosophers to let Roy slide on it.

"So, how do you perceive my responsibility to you?" Slade was going to make Roy work for this, he decided, to test the brain behind that beautiful brawn. 

Roy looked at the man he had come to love over the course of six months. He had never known the full attention of any one person in his life, and though Slade did leave, did go to do his jobs, Slade was careful to make sure Wintergreen was there, to stand in during his brief absences. When Slade was home, he let Roy share his life, both in training and relaxing. He knew the man had been very careful with him, had avoided anything Roy might associate with the way Roy had paid for his drugs, living on the streets. 

When it boiled down to it, Roy wanted to heal from that too, and thought Slade was his savior again.

"I don't, sir, want a father, and that is how you have set yourself up. I've had three attempt it, and quite seriously, it has sucked." Roy met that gimlet stare with a frank, open honesty. "I see you as someone more than that to me, if you'd let it happen." His voice did fail him some, admitting what he wanted in his heart, if not truly speaking them aloud. "Someone who won't let old wounds fester."

Slade considered that, long and slow. He knew, of course, what the boy was hinting. He also was not adverse to it; Roy was very beautiful on a primal level, all youth and strength and fire. He merely did not want to flaw what he saw. And then Roy spoke one last time.

"Maybe I could be Patroclus to your Achilles…only without the Greek tragedy at the end of that…" Roy gave a small smile, thinking that he might have passed the test given on his knowledge of philosophy.

"Think grander, my boy…think Hephaestion." Slade indicated Roy could come to him, and the redhead nearly leaped up, moving with grace to the man. Slade allowed himself to slide his hand over Roy's face, thumb tracing the jaw before he tangled his hand in that bright hair. The boy's eyes shone with fervent devotion, just before he felt the kiss that sealed their new arrangement.

* * *

It took a minute for it to really sink in who was standing on the doorstep, who that tall red headed youth was, dressed in prep school clothes and looking for the entire world like a poster boy for GQ. Donna had no idea who the man with him was, but there was something still very much their Roy in the stamp of that face. It was Donna that let out a battle yell truly worthy of an Amazon, running from the security camera room to the door. Vic followed with more of a puzzled look, while Dick sprinted from his perch on the gymnasium's uneven bars at Donna's tone. Slowly, Raven and Wally emerged from a room, but the speedster took off like a shot when he heard Dick cry out at the doorway. Kory's curiosity knew no bounds as Gar scampered around her feet like a kitten in his ocelot form.

Roy stared at his three oldest friends, saw their changes from over the past ten months and tried hard to seem as laid back as he possibly could. To be honest he was tenser seeing them than he was going to be once his supposed guardian reared his head.

"Hi guys; did ya miss me?" he cracked, a grin breaking the shock that the three original Titans were showing on their face. Almost as one, they ringed him in, hugging him fiercely, forgetting for just a minute that there were questions to ask, answers to learn. Donna's kiss on his cheek was gratifying, as was the solid punch in the arm Wally gave him for being gone so long. But it was Dick, actually getting to hug Dick, that made Roy tear up with happiness. 

When the fierce reunion started to separate, Roy gave a cursory look at the new members. Preliminary surveillance had yielded a few clues, and it was going to take a lot more before he could begin to measure them fully. His companion was introducing himself as George Toth, explaining a sad tale of having found Roy broken and battered in an alley when his car had broken down, passing through a low part of Star City.

Roy knew the story by heart, had let Slade drill the details into him. Mister Toth had no sons, and had used his money to buy the best treatments for Roy, seeing something noble in him despite the wrecked shell. Roy had not remembered much, and had recently begun to have dreams of the Titans. Then, just two days before, his memory seemed to clear on some issues, and he had vehemently insisted he was a Teen Titan, that he needed to be with them now that they were active again.

"Thank you, Mister Toth. I hate to say this, seeing's how well you've done by our friend, but Roy's got a legal guardian," Robin began. "I mean, you've been a swell guy to take him in and get him well…"

"Oh I do understand. Roy, you certainly won't mind if I keep in touch?" Mister Toth asked, hugging Roy with true affection.

"I expect it…and thank you again." Roy stepped away from him, and watched him leave, clamping down his panic sharply. With Wintergreen leaving him, his last tie to Slade was severed, for now, and he had to be strong, to last until he could meet the man inconspicuously.

The cloaked girl was staring at him, studying him like a specimen under a microscope. She was magic, outside the hard rules of life he had been training under, Roy remembered. He would just have to keep his Navajo meditative chants at the forefront of his mind, and keep himself calm, if her rumored empathy were a fact.

* * *

There had been introductions, but for the most part, the team had split into old and new, with the exception of Kory. As strongly attracted as she was to Dick, this new boy with fiery hair and the mean catlike stride of a proven fighter drew her too. She saw something between Dick and the new young man, something she wanted to know more about.

While Roy was explaining that Mister Toth had discovered his love of the bow, and helped him focus on it as a means of therapy, Donna slipped out to make a single phone call. She returned, trying to not be too evident in her jealousy at how often Roy reached out to touch Dick's hand to emphasize a point. When she could not help herself anymore, she slid down from the back of the couch, settling behind Roy to loop her arms over his shoulders.

"We're just glad you're safe, Speedy-Boy." Donna pressed her cheek to his, and he rubbed into it, smiling.

"Yes, it's going to be great having you back in the team." Dick pointed to where Vic and Gar were horsing around. "See, we've got it made this time, Roy. More than enough muscle to pick up your light weight tail." Roy grinned. 

"Who's the lightweight?" With that the archer dove from Donna, tackling Dick and taking him to the floor. Their good mood was infectious, drawing the other boys, starting with Wally, into it. Before long, only Raven was not apart of the running game of Tag and Tickle as the teens celebrated the return of one of their own.

So it was Raven who answered the door when Roy's guardian arrived, leading the way to the den. She then went to retrieve the others.

"Titans," she called, her voice soft, non-urgent, but it caught all the newer ones' attention, and Dick's. 

"Yes, Raven?" Dick replied.

"Your friend's guardian is here." Raven turned and left, going above to her room then. 

Roy had stiffened, holding Donna down on the floor in a playful wrestling match. Donna immediately wriggled up, hugging him tight, her lips at his ear. 

"We're with you," she promised, before they both got to their feet. It was all four of the original Titans who went to the den, keenly missing Garth as they did so. Roy looked up from the floor as they entered the room, expecting to see Ollie glowering at him.

He was not expecting to see Dinah Lance, in civilian clothes, with a small suitcase.

* * *

Dinah stood at the window, while Roy paced and fidgeted. "I'm sorry I'm not who you expected," she told him at last. "It should have been Hal; you've known him longer."

"Where's Queen?" Roy demanded, anger in that voice; now, he wasn't even good enough to pick up?!

"Out of your life, for good, if you like," Dinah said firmly, turning back to him. "When I found out…when Hal came and told me, we scoured Star City. Found evidence of you, too, but not soon enough, honey."

"Tell me … tell me why Ollie's gone…" Roy pushed the issue, needing to know.

"Because any bastard that would do that to a boy as smart and talented as you, when he was the damn reason you were hurting that much already? Deserves far worse than just having the custody stripped off him, and Hal was more than glad to get that worked out. After I had words."

"You barely know me, lady," he said, trying to be tough. "You're just the girl of the week where Ollie was concerned."

Dinah winced. "I deserved that. Didn't take me long to figure out I was part of your problem." She walked over and set both her hands on his shoulders, looking up into his face. "You're not stuck with me or Hal, Boy-o. We'll help you get situated anywhere you want." Her bottom lip quivered, just a little. "But I'd like a chance to get to know you, to give you a real home, and try damn hard to not let you down like Queen did."

Now Roy looked at the silent but very present other three Titans. Donna was nodding; she knew nothing but good from the woman. Wally also flashed a thumbs up, while Dick…Dick studied Dinah a very long moment before giving Roy one sharp nod.

"Alright. I live with you…and Hal?" he questioned, knowing that had to have been a kick to Ollie's balls.

"He doesn't live with me, but he shares the guardianship. We won't ever both be gone, unless you are here at Titans Tower," she promised. "And that doesn't mean us shipping you here any time it is convenient to us to do so. I'm willing to find an apartment here in town, so you can come over whenever you want." Roy was beginning to think she was a pushover when her face hardened. "But Roy…abuse my trust in you, or let me catch one rumor you found drugs again…and you'll wish I'd kick you out. I won't let you waste yourself on that mess."

Roy chuckled then, liking the fire she flashed at him. "I'm clean. And I'll stay clean." There was no way in hell he'd ever poison the body and mind that Slade found so perfect to his uses. "But I really appreciate the idea of staying close to the Titans…I think I'm going to need them, while I pick up my life."

"Done deal, Boy-o." She smiled, and hugged his neck. "Welcome home."

* * *

Within a week, Roy knew why Dinah had lasted so long as Ollie's girlfriend. She did not take crap from anyone, not him, not the gangs, not Hal. She found them a place to live, spotted him money to get a bike, got him into a program to help him get a diploma. By the month's end, she had a floral shop open, and they were patrolling a few hours every night that he was not at the Tower. If Roy had not been too aware of what remained to be done to protect his friends from the life they had chosen in youthful ignorance, he might have been happy.

But then again, he was plagued in the early morning hours by the thought of Slade's voice, his hands, the way he made Roy feel on top of the world even as he showed him how high there still was to climb.

It was growing far too easy to think that maybe, just possibly, Slade had been wrong, that things could work for the best for his friends. Until they ran up against a strange man calling himself Dr. Light, and both Wally and Donna were hurt bad enough for their mentors to be called to take them home. It steeled his resolve to gain all their secrets, to ready the Tower for Slade's bold move to take them out of harm's way.

And then his faith was proven, as the man in question showed up at the car wash where he was getting Dinah's delivery van detailed. Working as her delivery man had helped him feel like he was standing on his own two feet just a little more. Now, staring at Slade, knowing it was him in that cap and jacket, false eye in place, he felt the thrill of knowing it was almost time to implement the plan. He did nothing to acknowledge Slade beyond the initial recognition, and continued his business.

When he had paid and gone back to the van, He pulled away and then turned his head to see Slade sitting there, cocky grin in place for the man. "You've got all I put in the drop?"

"Yeah, Kid, good work. Just figured I'd drop in, give you a heads up…HIVE is sending an agent to collect on their original contract. Within the week." He didn't say anything as the van moved toward a smaller side street. "They call him The Ravager."

"Alright." Roy parked the van behind a small business front. "Anything else?" he asked as Slade passed him a small, rolled message. The older man then reached around the back of Roy's head and pulled him close for a long, grinding kiss, chuckling when the red head moved out of his seat and into Slade's lap. 

"Miss me, Kid?" 

"Hell yeah."

* * *

Dick rested with his head next to Roy's, though their bodies were laying in opposite directions. The stars seemed quite bright as they enjoyed a rare night on the roof, no trouble brewing anywhere they knew of.

"I just can't believe Batman was so paranoid about you," Dick finished up with, having told Roy how Batman had begun an investigation into Roy's missing time, into the man that had brought him back.

"He's just looking out for you," Roy said, letting a touch of bitterness into his voice. "More'n Ollie ever did for me."

"Yeah well, you got Lantern and Canary now… They went nuts trying to find you, ya know?" Robin felt the bitterness was earned.

"They're cool." Roy lapsed into silence then. He'd have to let Wintergreen know, but was sure the man's cover would hold even to Batman's scrutiny. And, in the back of his mind, he knew that if the Bat really gave any kind of a damn about it all, he never would have put Dick out in harm's way. None of the so-called heroes would have.

And Roy was going to put that situation right, with Slade's help.

* * *

Speedy slid under the spinning kick of his friend, Robin, bow at the ready, arrows singing off the string. He was on past and out of the way before Robin even landed, bow readying on another shot, this one just under Wonder Girl's fist, into the second of her opponents. 

These were just thugs, no matter that there were damn near fifty of them. Speedy watched the way of his new allies, the ones he had not known before coming to the new Tower. Starfire and Cyborg both relied too heavily on their strength, their ability to take punishment. Beast Boy was wily, able to use his shape changing to evade or overcome but he lacked true imagination on how to use it.

Raven was the wild card of the new bunch. Her abilities were less on display, he knew instinctively, even as he fired a net arrow to contain three she had knocked down to the ground. She could very well be the thorn in all the right plans, especially as Speedy suspected her of having her own plans.

The path of battle suddenly opened, and Speedy felt the change in the way they moved. It was becoming too easy, causing him to shout to Robin, getting his attention and a braced knee. Speedy was in motion before even Kid Flash could react, springing off Robin's assist to a low tree branch. Starfire noted the beauty of the move, with her love of the warrior's ways the uniquely matched pair pulled off.

"Incoming!" His cry was barely out before a new wave of ten armored goons fell on them. He was sure then, this was all leading to something else, and he applied every bit of his training to the potential threat they were not seeing yet.

"Kid Flash, recon!" Robin shouted. Speedy nodded to himself, firing one of his newer arrows. It flashed, and then popped as it connected to the armor, discharging a voltage that knocked the man out. If Robin felt it too, his instincts were sound.

"Beast Boy!" Cyborg called out. "Beast Boy is off the field!"

"On it!" Speedy shouted, moving fast in the direction he had last seen the green skinned boy. His brain was moving too fast, he thought, tracking the vague flashes of color and motion he had not even been aware he had noticed. When he saw Slade again he was going to have to thank him for the intensive training in more proper fashion.

"Cover Speedy!" Robin shouted, and Starfire broke off to do just that before Wonder Girl could. The Tamaranean was quick enough to catch up to the archer, but was too focused on the trail to miss the shot fired her way. She let out a small shout, as her flight abruptly cut out from the high-powered nerve toxin working through her body.

"Wasn't sure if that would work or not," a steely voice growled before a man in a blue and orange costume, complete with layered armor, steeped out, casting a rifle down before he drew a sword on Speedy. The red head saw the unconscious form of the green skinned shape changer just beyond him.

"Ravager!" Speedy said, his mind connecting this man to the one he had been warned about. It was unnerving; that costume pattern was so similar to the costume Slade kept carefully in his armory, the one that always left when Slade did.

"How fortunate you know my name, archer…now you know your executioner," the swordsman said, making a pass that rendered Speedy's bow useless. Only the conditioned agility of the archer kept him from being seriously harmed in the same pass. Speedy poured himself into defending against that sword, looking for an opening to disarm the fighter. Every opening he saw led into a trap, though, as Ravager controlled the battle. Speedy could not out-think his moves, could not see ahead to the true weakness, like Wintergreen had been training him. 

Instead, the archer gave himself over to the fight, taking Slade's way, letting the mind and body fuse as one to move in the battle as a whole. Gloved hands slapped the flat of the blade, feet found connections on muscled, armored thighs, calves…all of it a deadly dance, as Speedy became a part of the battle, not just a contestant.

"That's it Speedy!" Robin called as the other Titans came on the scene. The archer's concentration broke some, just as he managed to claw his hands around his opponents mask. Ravager ripped himself free, leaving the mask shredded in Speedy's hands before dropping a smoke grenade.

"Another day, Titans!" he roared, vanishing in the confusion and coughing his grenade caused. Robin went straight to Starfire checking her over, while Cyborg gathered the unconscious Beast Boy.

"Cheer up, Speedy. He might have got away, but he didn't get Beast Boy." Wonder Girl hovered near the shell-shocked archer, until he forced himself to look up and grin.

"You're right, Wondie." He nodded to his bow. "But I didn't get a chance to take that out of his hide, either." He hid his other thoughts away, fighting down his nausea to help clean up the battlefield, to handle all the details after a fight.

* * *

Roy's eyes were troubled as he drew a trembling hand out of his pocket, with a scrap of the mask he had salvaged from Robin's gathering of the evidence. Slade saw the tremor, saw the closed off body language, and wondered at its cause.

"Your face…" Roy matched gazes with his mentor, his lover…his savior with pain.

"The Ravager?" This did not set well with Slade, his emotions marching over his own face with such honesty that Roy sagged in relief.

"You didn't know." He flew to Slade then, moving into those open arms, clinging to him.

"No…I did not know who he was." Slade stroked the red hair soothingly, understanding how it must have seemed a betrayal, if his protégé had come face to face with…it had to be Grant. The boy had disappeared from his knowledge recently, though Addie insisted Grant was in touch with her.

"Who is he then? A brother? Cousin?"

Slade chuckled, hearing that adoration and flattery in the charming way Roy was trying to avoid mention of their age difference.

"No, likely it is my eldest son." Slade slipped Roy from his lap, settling back in the hotel chair with a sigh, before letting Roy rejoin him. "I'll try to handle this."

"If he's taken a contract, and he's anything like you…"

"I know." Slade drew Roy's head to his shoulder. "I'd rather you not fight my son, but I have confidence that you will come out on top if I cannot dissuade him." He put that confidence in his voice, and knew it was just what Roy needed to hear. He meant it too; if Addie had let Grant walk the very same path she despised in her husband, things needed to be …adjusted, Slade decided.

* * *

Hal nodded with a smile at Roy as the boy headed out to handle a large delivery for Dinah. He slipped in, flipped the sign to 'closed', and walked over to the brunette. 

"It's not closing time for another thirty minutes," Dinah said firmly.

"Not even for my return?" he asked her with a jaunty wink. 

"Sign, Hal." Her tone brooked no argument. "Go on upstairs and I'll be up after closing." She watched him raise his hand and made a noise, leading to him sighing and walking back over to flip the sign back. 

"Spoilsport," he said, heading for the stairs.

"Cocky flyboy." She smiled in his direction, turning back to her work. She would have to go up and cook after work, although with Roy being out for the next couple of hours, maybe cooking could wait…

* * *

She rested against his chest, feeling his hand move over her back with lazy pleasure. "You never fail to deliver, Flyboy."

"You inspire me." His voice was a deep rumble under her ear. "Tell me how things have been the last two months?"

"Good. Roy's working good. He's a solid boy. His teacher at the program was amazed with him." She ran a light finger over his chest. "He's patrolled with me at least three nights a week, unless he is staying over at the Tower."

"How's that going? Robin doing good with having his best friend back?" Hal gently caressed her spine, loving the way she arched into him.

"Yes. I haven't had a lot of time to go by, but I've been sending food up there, and Roy brings back empty plates," she laughed.

"Lots of growing boys and girls there." The soft glow of green lit up the room as he scooped the blanket up and drew it over her, feeling her shiver slightly.

"Maybe you should stop by," Dinah said, before rising up to listen as Roy parked the delivery van in the garage. "He'll want to patrol tonight."

"Let me go with him," Hal said firmly. "I know you, Di…you've been going ninety miles a minute since you moved here probably."

"I don't know how not to." She did snuggle into the pillows as he lifted her with green energy, settling her off his body.

"I declare tonight Dinah's night off," he insisted. "I need to spend some time with your boy."

"He'd do good to have some adult male influence, I think," Dinah agreed. "You've been gone a lot since we got him back."

* * *

Roy blocked Dick's punch and grinned as he feinted a kick. Dick did not fall for the feint, but only barely dodged the too-fast strike up at his face. 

"You're a lot better than you were," Dick told him. 

"You're no slacker yourself." They continued to spar, a few blows connecting, but mostly a dance of attempts and dodges. Neither of the boys could quite stop grinning, loving the give and take of the training, each trying to get the upper hand.

A low punch that Roy caught gave him the advantage long enough to throw his partner, following immediately with a pin. Dick followed through with a roll over, using his agility and knowledge of leverage to keep the bigger boy down. Roy bucked up once, before relaxing completely, laughing between panted breaths.

"Damn good, Robbie." Green eyes met blue with a smile, before Roy felt the shift in Dick's body language, one that said something was wrong. "What?" 

"Why are you so good now? You go home to Queen, then you vanish, and when you come back after it's all said and done, you are twice as good a fighter, better at reading a fight, and just…"

"Intense?" Roy pushed up and Dick let him sit, shifting off the top of him. "When I started getting better, I had to find ways to not think about the drugs. Fighting was a way to do that, and I was given a teacher," he told Dick. "As far as being intense goes…I've got reasons to try ten times as hard as before."

"Maybe." Dick put his hand around the back of Roy's neck, matching gazes again. "Just remember you're home with us now. You don't have to carry the fights alone." 

Roy matched the gesture, and pulled Dick close so they bumped foreheads and stayed that way. "I'm not letting anyone down by failing to do my best." The redhead watched as Dick closed his eyes, accepting this new facet of his best friend with a sigh.

"It's gonna get you hurt one day," Dick said, with more emotion than he intended.

The archer ran his hand up from Dick's neck into his hair, caressing gently. "It's going to be fine, Robbie. Everything will be just fine." His complete confidence in that statement came across, and the team leader slowly nodded, before pulling back to look at Roy more closely.

"Feel like patrolling? Just you and me?"

"I'd like that a lot, Dick." Roy bounced up to his feet, pulling Dick up. They wound up very close, their bodies almost touching but not quite, and it made Dick flush as he remembered so many little things of their past. Those shared experiences flashed through Roy's eyes, flecking them with gold as he raised an eyebrow. "Thought you and Star…"

"Doesn't change what we have." Dick said casually. "We shared a lot…kinda thought you pushed it away. I mean you and Donna…"

"Donna just wants to make Wondie mad by dating a boy." Roy laughed. "Not that she's not fun, but she's not you." 

Dick nodded. "Yeah." He ducked his head to the door. "Patrol still?"

"And your room after?" Roy asked with a cocky grin. Dick's low laugh and nod was all the answer he needed.

* * *

Martian Manhunter responded to the distress call personally, as the hero involved had gone missing after a severe emotional upset. He teleported down, finding the lost hero floating barely conscious in the water, the sharks already rousing to the blood in the water. The green skinned alien picked up the fallen man, and signaled for transport. A groan of pain reassured him the man lived as they materialized. 

It took J'onn most of an hour to stabilize the man. When he had, and the man should have been sleeping under sedation but was fighting it, J'onn lightly touched his mind to learn what had happened.

{"New villain. Merc assassin named Deathstroke."} Impressions of searching for Roy, then getting sidetracked by the investigation into this new threat, followed by flashes of a deadly fight ended only when the man had fallen off the bridge they had been on moved through the man's mind.

"Sleep now. We'll find what the man intends, Green Arrow." The alien rested a hand on the man's shoulder.

* * *

Roy slipped inside the house, knowing he was very late. Fooling around with Dick had been fun, but then he had needed to leave his latest report where Wintergreen could pick it up. He hoped Dinah had gone on without him; he had heard Hal was supposed to have left again earlier.

Now he was unsure that was good, because Hal would have given him a stern talk about getting in so late, and let it go. As he looked into Dinah's eyes, he knew the woman was not going to let it go with a lecture. 

"Three times in two weeks, Boy-o," Dinah said softly. "We had an agreement, where you get in by a certain time, or you call me."

"Sorry, Di…Robin got me to do a patrol, and time got away from us," Roy said, ducking his head. Light blue eyes looked over him, taking in the still damp hair, and nodded.

"I worry," she said, patting the couch next to her. "I really, really understand your dedication. I wasn't much younger than you are now when I started, and I know you've already been doing this a few years. But with the way the world is, I can't help that I'm going to worry when you miss the curfew we agreed on."

Roy joined her, flopping his head back onto her arm, which made her curl him closer, ruffling his hair with her other hand. He liked the casual touches she gave, the random hugs, but it always plagued him that she was very much a part of the problem. Having begun the hero business at a young age, she had no problem with taking kids into battle at her side. 

"Di, I honestly just…well, Robin and I don't get a lot of time away from the others." He radiated an honest chagrin for breaking curfew.

"Well…" Dinah sighed softly. "Try harder. For me." She gave him a sad smile and he had to clamp down on a surge of emotion. She had been so good to him; he had heard just how hard she and Hal had hunted for him, and to see her sad tugged on his heartstrings. 

"I will, Di…I promise." He hugged her tight, and then bounced up. "Going out tonight?"

"Yes, if you're up for it. Otherwise, I've got a new movie tape." Dinah looked up at him, her eyes beginning to sparkle at seeing his vibrant energy.

"Well, it was kinda quiet when Robin and I headed out." He nodded toward the kitchen. "You set things up, and I'll make popcorn."

"Sounds good, Roy." She rose gracefully and walked over to the little used television, working with video player to get it set up while Roy got them popcorn and drinks. A night in with Roy would go along way toward soothing her quiet worrying for him.

* * *

It began on a Saturday afternoon. A hard training session, running through the gauntlet of automated targets suddenly turned real when Raven screamed out a warning, a warning choked off mid-cry. 

"Titans!" Robin shouted, looking for Speedy to pop up at his shoulder.

"Perimeter defense isn't working, Robin!" Cyborg called, and that made Robin notice the communicators were down. 

"TITANS!" he roared at the top of his voice, pulling them toward his position to regroup. Cyborg fell back to him, scanning with his technology, as Beast Boy limped up.

"Some dude, like that guy that Speedy scared off, Ravager…whatever, but bigger, scarier. Orange and blue." The green boy was favoring one leg, but he was prepared to make it work.

"Where's Kid Flash?" Wonder Girl demanded as she hovered above them.

"Starfire?" Cyborg threw out at her.

"And where the hell is Speedy?" Robin wanted to know, feeling a key part of his battle missing, not having the older boy to watch his back.

"You won't like the answer to that," came a sinisterly urbane voice. "I promise you that, Robin." As they turned, the man Beast Boy had described fired an energy staff, and Wonder Girl moved to intercept the shot aimed for Cyborg.

Robin's nerves prickled just as the blast hit; he could have sworn that the stranger had never intended to hit Cyborg, that Wonder Girl had been his target all along. The blast caught her, throwing her to the ground with enough force to stun her. That had Cyborg targeting the man, readying to fire, just before a high-pitched small missile struck his shoulder.

"Robin!" Cyborg managed to cry out, just before it attacked both his organic nerves and his electrical processors. He could not do anything as everything locked in place. 

"CY!" Beast Boy leaped over to see if he could remove it. As his hand locked on it, a secondary charge erupted, and the green boy fell to the ground, unconscious.

"Girl, I wouldn't move if I were you," the man told Wonder Girl calmly. "You aren't as tough as that sister of yours yet."

"Robin." The voice, cold steel and not a trace of sorrow arrested Robin in mid spring, making him spin to see Speedy…except the boy was in a costume similar to the newcomer's, only with a matching domino rather than a full mask. Worse, there was an arrow nocked for him.

* * *

"Speedy, before you do that…stop and ask who bought this contract?" The voice was so familiar, but laden with careful neutrality. "You've got no reason to trust me, but trust your own instincts; how the hell is your buddy here going to keep these kids off the streets, out of our business, once you finish bagging them all?" 

Slade let his attention go from Wonder Girl just a moment, to see Green Arrow holding a bow half ready, pointed neither to him nor Roy but at the ground for now. This had not been in his plans at all; he had been sure that the rich bastard had drowned after their last encounter.

"Shut up, Arrow," Roy growled, fingers twitching as he kept Robin in his sights. "We'll make them see, they'll understand it's just not right, not safe," he informed his mentor.

"Would that have kept you home? What if I had forbidden you to go out? What if I had told you no when you pestered me? Use that brain of yours; you're a helluva lot smarter than to fall for whatever he's told you!"

"Shut UP!!!" Now Roy did turn, arrow aimed for Ollie. "You don't know how smart or skilled or anything I am! Because you never paid attention to me!"

"I screwed up, Speedy…don't deny that what I did to you was the worst thing I could have done." He relaxed the bow fully, letting the arrow fall. "You do whatever it takes to make you feel better on that score." He released the bow, and it fell, something Ollie never would have done in the past. "But ask him who holds the contract first!" His eyes blazed behind the mask, throwing every bit of trust he had ever put in the boy to have his back in his voice now.

Slade could feel the prickle of danger in the logic of the archer. He started to shift targets, but Wonder Girl had recovered enough to jump him immediately.

"Kid," he said with easy familiarity. "We have a contract to finish, sure. And it means your friends aren't going to be out here, taking on people like that Light fellow." 

"Who?" Roy's voice was rough. "Who were we going to turn them over to?" Somehow, in the heat of Slade's kisses, the feel of the man against him, and the unbearable need to know none of his friends would ever be abandoned or lost in their world, he had not thought far enough ahead.

Slade heard the past tense 'were' and knew the archer had cracked a small chink in the careful armor he had built on his perfect companion.

"You know me, Roy. Stop and think on your own question, and tell me if it really matters what I planned for them?" Slade knew he was on a slippery slope right now; if Queen had made him doubt the bonds they had formed…

"Answer me." The confidence, full and bold, that Slade had helped find, turned back on him. 

"He won't, because he doesn't lie…or you'll catch him if he does," Arrow told Roy in a voice that was very calm. "Right, Wilson?"

"CADMUS." Slade looked at Roy evenly across the distance, aware that Robin had begun to move, was inching forward, hand falling to his belt. The situation was not manageable, the mercenary knew. "We can discuss this later."

"I don't think so," Roy said, in a tone of voice that managed to be both strong and reflect the broken trust all in one. "You let me believe we could fix the problem, Slade." He snapped his bow across at the man he had fallen hard for, a man he now saw as having used him all along. "You might as well have been lying to me the whole time!!!"

Slade cursed inwardly. "Don't…" He got out nothing else, as Robin took advantage of the fuller focus on Roy to hurl a bird-a-rang, burying it in the opening of the energy staff. Wonder Girl was up the instant it started to pop and hiss, but Slade was already moving, dropping a particularly noxious gas grenade. The kids got hit by it, but both Roy and the archer started moving around it, coming for him as he made his exit.

"You made a mistake," a suddenly visible Martian Manhunter said, reaching out as his eyes glowed. Slade reacted before he even processed the threat, choosing a different path…and finding nothing but dark oblivion as a small woman with a large lung capacity and a gift to use it hit him full on in an endless sonic barrage.

Ollie watched as J'onn secured the man and took him away, then turned slowly to look at Roy. He wanted to reach out, wanted to take the boy in his arms and never let go…but the young man he saw now…. 

"Thank you, Roy…for being willing to listen, despite what I did." He turned to move away, meeting Dinah's eyes briefly, and walking marginally taller to see the pride there.

"Ollie…" Roy's voice pulled him back, but Ollie did not see the punch until he was laying flat on his back. "We'll consider that a down payment for your screw up, and my screw up as the balance." He looked back over his shoulder as Dick and Donna caught up. He slowly turned, holding his bow out to Dick. "What I did…I thought was right…I was trying to protect you all," Roy defended himself.

"You were wrong," Dick said, his voice hard, but he would not take the bow. "And now, you are going to tell me every thing, and start fixing it." He could not offer Roy personal reassurances, but there was no way he was turning Roy loose, not when he knew this never would have come to pass without his having abandoned his friend too.

"We'll start by helping the ones you already disabled," Donna said, not very trusting in her tone, but following Dick's lead. Both bracketed the red head, as they went to help the ones he had taken out of the fight early.

Dinah gave Ollie a hand up, smiling sadly.

"Ollie…"

"No Di… Just look after my boy for me…I'll be in touch, when he's ready." The man dusted himself off and set off on foot away from her.

"And me?" she whispered softly, but she knew better than to look farther than helping Roy truly heal.

* * *

Getting used to the fact his team wanted him at all had taken time. Worse, he kept feeling like they were constantly judging him. That might have been at the forefront of his mind, when he dove between two demons to grab Raven away from the enthrallment her father seemed to be holding on her.

It was a suicidal move, but Roy had nothing to lose, right?

When his team had pulled off the day, it was Raven who soundly disabused him of the notion. When they brought Roy back in, despite Slade's manipulations, they had wiped the slate clean.

* * *

He had moved on, stayed tight with his friends, stayed with Dinah, but he had moved on from the warped view of life Slade had given him.

He had grown, become a man, made his own mistakes, and never let the shadow of the mercenary hit man fall on him.

He knew when Slade escaped prison; both Hal and Dinah had worried; Robbie had offered to help hunt him back down.

Roy, now Arsenal and running for the government, using those hard won skills for his country, had shaken his head.

He swore Slade Wilson was nothing but a bad memory.

He was still swearing it as he burned the card, marked 'S', left on his dresser.

He swore it even harder as he looked at the man, face to face, on a rooftop in New York that same night.

"I never lied about what I felt." The voice was low, potent with memories and regrets.

"Funny way of showing it, using me to take my own friends down, to turn a profit," Roy growled, biting it off as he realized he should have just walked away.

"My way and the one you chose after me…they run in different directions. But I never lied on that." With a flick of 'be safe' in his own hand code, the mercenary was gone.

Roy just knew that his heart would never admit it.


End file.
